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Oregon agriculture gears up for new governor, legislative session
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1/12/2011
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Article Content Suggested lead
The 2011 Oregon Legislature will no doubt playa pivotal role in the future of the state's natural resource industries, including agriculture:
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Audio 01
For Oregon agriculture, what happens in Salem doesn't stay in Salem. There will certainly be legislative proposals this session that have a significant impact on farmers and ranchers. But Oregon Department of Agriculture Director Katy Coba says a better balance in the makeup of the legislature bodes well:
COBA: "Moderation in political views, how we find the middle ground in the incredible challenges we are facing, how we can move the economy forward, how we minimize impacts to state agency budgets, how we find new ways of doing business. It's all going to require bipartisanship." :19
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Audio 02
The state budget is the overriding issue in this session. ODA's agency budget is part of the mix. Coba says Governor Kitzhaber has shown a strong interest and understanding in the role natural resources play in any economic recovery:
COBA: "Translating that to the state budget, does that mean we are immune from budget cuts? No it does not. But I think we'll see attention and support of our budget issues. This administration will do the best it can, given the overall difficult budget situation, to support the Oregon Department of Agriculture." :17
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Coba's message to the ag industry is to be active and aware in the State Capitol during this session. In Salem, I'm Bruce Pokarney.
Additional audio: Audio 03
COBA says this will be an extremely important legislative session for the agriculture industry:
"I think this will be the most challenging session from a budget standpoint that we've had in my 25 years in state government. It's very important for the industry to be involved in those budget discussions." :15
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Additional audio: Audio 04
COBA says a better balance between democrats and republicans in the legislature is probably a good thing for the industry, which will lead to moderation:
"There will also be other legislation that is presented, on land use, pesticides, food safety. But given the closeness in the party control in the legislature this coming session, legislation that moves through is going to have to have bipartisan support." :18
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Full story
http://oregon.gov/ODA/news/110112legislature.shtml |
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